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A Fairytale Jewish Wedding at Castello Bevilacqua, Verona, Italy

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Lyndsay and Bill, Castello Bevilacqua, Verona, Italy

A magical Jewish wedding in an Italian castle? Yes, please! SoCal couple Lyndsay, the podcaster behind The Pain Game Podcast, and Bill, a radio talk show host, had the most fantastic destination wedding in Verona’s majestic Castello Bevilacqua.

They focused on bringing out the fairytale vibes of their fab venue, as well as bringing in lots of lemons, in honor of all the lemons the couple have had thrown at them – and the awesome lemonade they’ve made out of whatever’s come their way!

We also love that, to bring their far-flung guests together, Lyndsay and Bill had a mystery dinner the night before the wedding to break the ice.

When it came time to choose the perfect team to capture their big day, Lyndsay and Bill chose Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Collephoto. Photographer Alessando Colle, second photographer Laura Bongiorni, editor by Serena Rossi, and videographer Damiano Mariotti made up the dream team.  

Read on for the full story in Lyndsay’s own words…

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How We Met

Lyndsay, the bride: I was introduced to Bill’s morning talk show in Los Angeles about 12 years ago. Coerced by a friend that I have to listen to him. Whatever! I didn’t do talk radio. I wasn’t in the early podcast scene.  I am a musician!

But then I turned on KFI AM 640 and started listening to The Bill Handel Show based out of Burbank, CA. It is the number 1 morning drive talk show in the United States — Monday through Friday. And he also has a legal show on KFI on Saturdays as well, called Handel on the Law.

I was hooked. I started going to events where he would be, and we just started talking, and it kept going until it turned into something pretty remarkable. US.

A shorter version is: Lyndsay fell in love with Bill as a listener. Bill fell in love with Lyndsay because she was a listener. The End.

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A Calla Blanche Bride for an Industrial Rustic Winter Jewish Wedding at King Plow Arts Center, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

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We are OBSESSED with the urban rustic ambience Casey, an elementary school teacher at a Jewish day school in Atlanta, and Scott, who’s in sales at a security company, brought to their winter Jewish wedding. Taking cues from their super cool venue, King Plow Arts Center – full of exposed brick galore – the pair went for a country-meets-city vibe focused on neutrals interspersed with succulents and greenery, and we’re in love! Don’t miss theexquisite photos from Ember Studio and video from Rusticus Films.

And REALLY don’t miss Casey and Scott’s gorgeous ketubah by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Noa Attias. Crafted in the artist’s trademark paper cut style, Noa crafted a modern piece in dark and light silvers that the couple now proudly displays in their home as the true piece of art it is.

We also love the couple’s sweet wintry wedding favors: each guest got a mason jar filled with hot cocoa, marshmallows and a personalized wooden spoon labelled with Casey and Scott’s wedding hashtag (@GREENEwontheGOLD) and a sticker on top that said “It Just Got Real. Enjoy something Hot, Love Casey and Scott” – cute!

Now over to the bride, who looked ravishing in Calla Blanche…

 

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How we met

Casey, the bride: We met on Jswipe!

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A Willowby by Watters Bride for a Double Feature Interfaith Jewish Wedding Anassa Hotel in Latchi, Cyprus and Westlake Village Inn Los Angeles, CA, USA

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Some couples get to have one wedding in a totally, jawdroppingly breathtaking setting. Stephanie and Raphael got to have TWO! Combining an intimate ceremony in Cyprus (at the same hotel where the pair’s love story began to unfold) with a bigger party for family and friends near their home in LA, they these two maintained continuity between the two events by putting Mediterranean style at the center of both events – and by booking beloved Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor LUZ Photography for both the Cyprus and LA festivities, who not only provided totally stunning pics from each event but also brought photographic continuity between the ceremony and reception.

We also love how this interfaith couple worked to craft a personal ceremony that was meaningful to both of them. This meant a contemporary take on mikveh with a dip in the Mediterranean Sea the evening before the ceremony, a ketubah, circling (each circled the other three times, and then the two did one last circle together in unison), exchanging personal vows, choosing a close friend to officiate, and, of course, smashing the glass!

There’s so much more we could say, but we’ll hand you over to Stephanie – who looked gorgeous in Willowby by Watters – for the rest…

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Two Weddings

Stephanie, the bride: On July 3rd, 2019 we were married in a small, intimate ceremony with only a few friends at the Anassa Hotel in Latchi, Cyprus. The location plays a significant role in our love story. The two of us were friends for many years until we travelled together in Tel Aviv and then Cyprus. It was there, at the Anassa hotel, that we realized we both had strong feelings for one another, beyond just friends.

On September 1, 2019, we celebrated our marriage with our family and friends at the Westlake Village Inn near Los Angeles, CA. Both of us have roots in Los Angeles, and the Westlake Village Inn provide us with a convenient, beautiful reception location that captured the Mediterranean vibes of our wedding.

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An Alon Livne Bride for a Shabbat Dinner-Inspired Jewish Wedding with a Macrame Chuppah at Jonah Club, Netanaya, Israel

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“When planning this wedding, we looked at it like the most epic Shabbat dinner we would ever throw.”

From the minute we read this line from STG Brides Club member Nikki, who works in marketing at a digital health startup (and also gives food tours and teaches yoga on the side), and Adam, who works in tech as an engineer, we were sold on their beautiful Jewish wedding.

Nikki and Adam, both Americans who met and live in Israel, wanted their wedding to be an occasion for their far-flung family and friends to come together and get to know each other – and get a taste of the couple’s life in Israel. And by the looks of the incredible photos and video from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Aya-Avi Photography, a husband and wife team handling photography and videography, they pulled it off with aplomb. Aya’s luminous photos really let the love between the pair for each other and for all their loved ones gathered together to celebrate them shine through.

We’re also in love with Nikki and Adam’s super cool macramé chuppah – and how awesome is it that they found their florist, Tom of Tomka Designs (we featured Tom and Matan’s own wedding on the blog a while back), right here on STG? The East Meets West boho style he worked with the couple to create for their chuppah area is truly beyond.

And we’re totally obsessed with Nikki’s bridal style, from her timelessly elegant gown from Israeli designer Alon Livne to her natural-with a-touch-of-glam hairstyle by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Yehonatan Yaeish – who not only styled the bride’s hair superbly but also brought great energy on the day.

There’s so much more we could say, but we’ll leave the rest to the bride… (and if you want to join Brides Club like Nikki did, click here (we’ve just released a few more free entry places – grab one before they all go!)

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How we met

Nikki, the bride: We happened to move to Israel one week apart and met 6 weeks later on Bumble. We decided to meet 10 minutes after our first conversation began and got married 2 years and 4 days later.

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An International Egalitarian Waterfront Jewish Wedding at Two Rivers Country Club, Williamsburg, VA, USA

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Chag sameach, smashing readers! We hope you’re having a wonderful Rosh Hashanah, however you choose to celebrate – to paraphrase our tag line, your Rosh Hashanah, your way!

Speaking of which – we just love it when a couple merges their backgrounds into a Jewish wedding that’s so perfectly them it couldn’t possibly be anyone else’s. Like Lauren and Josh. American bride Lauren, who works in communications, and English groom Josh, can accountant, wed in the most beautiful waterfront spot in Lauren’s home state of Virginia.

Combining the bride’s Reform Ashkenazi background with the groom’s Sephardi Orthodox upbringing was paramount for these two – as was crafting a fully egalitarian ceremony – and we think they did a fantastic job working both of their traditions plus their shared modern values into their beautiful ceremony. For instance, their gorgeous ketubah from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Ketubah.com displays the traditional text with the Liebermann clause included, alongside an English translation of the couple’s choosing. And while mostly keeping the ceremony traditional, the pair opted to exchange rings and to skip out on circling. We’re obsessed with Maria  Grace Photography’s joyous, emotional shots of  the chuppah – and the whole fantastic day.

And how sweet is it that Lauren’s father built the couple’s simple birch chuppah, which Lauren and Josh covered with both of their tallitot from growing up!

We can’t let you go without mentioning how much we love that Lauren found her fab dusty rose bridesmaids’ dresses right here on STG – we’ll let her take it from here…

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How we met

Lauren, the bride: We met one summer during university; Josh decided to do a summer work program in America and somehow ended up working as a lifeguard at a water park in Virginia. We became friends later in the summer and decided to go traveling together the following year once we finished uni. We ended up dating shortly after the start of our travels and spent our first year of dating traveling around Europe, Australia and the US.

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